.\"     Title: \fBmyisampack\fR
.\"    Author: 
.\" Generator: DocBook XSL Stylesheets v1.70.1 <http://docbook.sf.net/>
.\"      Date: 11/02/2006
.\"    Manual: MySQL Database System
.\"    Source: MySQL 4.1
.\"
.TH "\fBMYISAMPACK\fR" "1" "11/02/2006" "MySQL 4.1" "MySQL Database System"
.\" disable hyphenation
.nh
.\" disable justification (adjust text to left margin only)
.ad l
.SH "NAME"
myisampack \- generate compressed, read\-only MyISAM tables
.br
pack_isam \- generate compressed, read\-only ISAM tables
.SH "SYNOPSIS"
.HP 35
\fBmyisampack [\fR\fB\fIoptions\fR\fR\fB] \fR\fB\fIfile_name\fR\fR\fB ...\fR
.HP 32
\fBpack_isam [\fR\fB\fIoptions\fR\fR\fB] \fR\fB\fIfile_name\fR\fR\fB \&...\fR
.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.PP
The
\fBmyisampack\fR
utility compresses
MyISAM
tables.
\fBmyisampack\fR
works by compressing each column in the table separately. Usually,
\fBmyisampack\fR
packs the data file 40%\-70%.
.PP
When the table is used later, the server reads into memory the information needed to decompress columns. This results in much better performance when accessing individual rows, because you only have to uncompress exactly one row.
.PP
MySQL uses
mmap()
when possible to perform memory mapping on compressed tables. If
mmap()
does not work, MySQL falls back to normal read/write file operations.
.PP
A similar utility,
\fBpack_isam\fR, compresses
ISAM
tables. Because
ISAM
tables are deprecated, this section discusses only
\fBmyisampack\fR, but the general procedures for using
\fBmyisampack\fR
are also true for
\fBpack_isam\fR
unless otherwise specified. References to
\fBmyisamchk\fR
should be read as references to
\fBisamchk\fR
if you are using
\fBpack_isam\fR.
.PP
Please note the following:
.TP 3n
\(bu
If the
\fBmysqld\fR
server was invoked with external locking disabled, it is not a good idea to invoke
\fBmyisampack\fR
if the table might be updated by the server during the packing process. It is safest to compress tables with the server stopped.
.TP 3n
\(bu
After packing a table, it becomes read\-only. This is generally intended (such as when accessing packed tables on a CD). Allowing writes to a packed table is on our TODO list, but with low priority.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fBmyisampack\fR
can pack
BLOB
or
TEXT
columns. (The older
\fBpack_isam\fR
program for
ISAM
tables does not have this capability.)
.sp
.RE
.PP
Invoke
\fBmyisampack\fR
like this:
.sp
.RS 3n
.nf
shell> \fBmyisampack [\fR\fB\fIoptions\fR\fR\fB] \fR\fB\fIfile_name\fR\fR\fB ...\fR
.fi
.RE
.PP
Each filename argument should be the name of an index (\fI.MYI\fR) file. If you are not in the database directory, you should specify the pathname to the file. It is permissible to omit the
\fI.MYI\fR
extension.
.PP
After you compress a table with
\fBmyisampack\fR, you should use
\fBmyisamchk \-rq\fR
to rebuild its indexes.
\fBmyisamchk\fR(1).
.PP
\fBmyisampack\fR
supports the following options:
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-help\fR,
\fB\-?\fR
.sp
Display a help message and exit.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-backup\fR,
\fB\-b\fR
.sp
Make a backup of each table's data file using the name
\fI\fItbl_name\fR\fR\fI.OLD\fR.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-character\-sets\-dir=\fR\fB\fIpath\fR\fR
.sp
The directory where character sets are installed. See
Section\ 9.1, \(lqThe Character Set Used for Data and Sorting\(rq.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-debug[=\fR\fB\fIdebug_options\fR\fR\fB]\fR,
\fB\-# [\fR\fB\fIdebug_options\fR\fR\fB]\fR
.sp
Write a debugging log. The
\fIdebug_options\fR
string often is
\'d:t:o,\fIfile_name\fR'.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-force\fR,
\fB\-f\fR
.sp
Produce a packed table even if it becomes larger than the original or if the intermediate file from an earlier invocation of
\fBmyisampack\fR
exists. (\fBmyisampack\fR
creates an intermediate file named
\fI\fItbl_name\fR\fR\fI.TMD\fR
in the database directory while it compresses the table. If you kill
\fBmyisampack\fR, the
\fI.TMD\fR
file might not be deleted.) Normally,
\fBmyisampack\fR
exits with an error if it finds that
\fI\fItbl_name\fR\fR\fI.TMD\fR
exists. With
\fB\-\-force\fR,
\fBmyisampack\fR
packs the table anyway.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-join=\fR\fB\fIbig_tbl_name\fR\fR,
\fB\-j \fR\fB\fIbig_tbl_name\fR\fR
.sp
Join all tables named on the command line into a single table
\fIbig_tbl_name\fR. All tables that are to be combined
\fImust\fR
have identical structure (same column names and types, same indexes, and so forth).
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-packlength=\fR\fB\fIlen\fR\fR,
\fB\-p \fR\fB\fIlen\fR\fR
.sp
Specify the row length storage size, in bytes. The value should be 1, 2, or 3.
\fBmyisampack\fR
stores all rows with length pointers of 1, 2, or 3 bytes. In most normal cases,
\fBmyisampack\fR
can determine the correct length value before it begins packing the file, but it may notice during the packing process that it could have used a shorter length. In this case,
\fBmyisampack\fR
prints a note that you could use a shorter row length the next time you pack the same file.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-silent\fR,
\fB\-s\fR
.sp
Silent mode. Write output only when errors occur.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-test\fR,
\fB\-t\fR
.sp
Do not actually pack the table, just test packing it.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-tmpdir=\fR\fB\fIpath\fR\fR,
\fB\-T \fR\fB\fIpath\fR\fR
.sp
Use the named directory as the location where
\fBmyisampack\fR
creates temporary files.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-verbose\fR,
\fB\-v\fR
.sp
Verbose mode. Write information about the progress of the packing operation and its result.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-version\fR,
\fB\-V\fR
.sp
Display version information and exit.
.TP 3n
\(bu
\fB\-\-wait\fR,
\fB\-w\fR
.sp
Wait and retry if the table is in use. If the
\fBmysqld\fR
server was invoked with external locking disabled, it is not a good idea to invoke
\fBmyisampack\fR
if the table might be updated by the server during the packing process.
.sp
.RE
.PP
The following sequence of commands illustrates a typical table compression session:
.sp
.RS 3n
.nf
shell> \fBls \-l station.*\fR
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my         994128 Apr 17 19:00 station.MYD
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my          53248 Apr 17 19:00 station.MYI
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my           5767 Apr 17 19:00 station.frm
shell> \fBmyisamchk \-dvv station\fR
MyISAM file:     station
Isam\-version:  2
Creation time: 1996\-03\-13 10:08:58
Recover time:  1997\-02\-02  3:06:43
Data records:              1192  Deleted blocks:              0
Datafile parts:            1192  Deleted data:                0
Datafile pointer (bytes):     2  Keyfile pointer (bytes):     2
Max datafile length:   54657023  Max keyfile length:   33554431
Recordlength:               834
Record format: Fixed length
table description:
Key Start Len Index   Type                 Root  Blocksize    Rec/key
1   2     4   unique  unsigned long        1024       1024          1
2   32    30  multip. text                10240       1024          1
Field Start Length Type
1     1     1
2     2     4
3     6     4
4     10    1
5     11    20
6     31    1
7     32    30
8     62    35
9     97    35
10    132   35
11    167   4
12    171   16
13    187   35
14    222   4
15    226   16
16    242   20
17    262   20
18    282   20
19    302   30
20    332   4
21    336   4
22    340   1
23    341   8
24    349   8
25    357   8
26    365   2
27    367   2
28    369   4
29    373   4
30    377   1
31    378   2
32    380   8
33    388   4
34    392   4
35    396   4
36    400   4
37    404   1
38    405   4
39    409   4
40    413   4
41    417   4
42    421   4
43    425   4
44    429   20
45    449   30
46    479   1
47    480   1
48    481   79
49    560   79
50    639   79
51    718   79
52    797   8
53    805   1
54    806   1
55    807   20
56    827   4
57    831   4
shell> \fBmyisampack station.MYI\fR
Compressing station.MYI: (1192 records)
\- Calculating statistics
normal:     20  empty\-space:   16  empty\-zero:     12  empty\-fill:  11
pre\-space:   0  end\-space:     12  table\-lookups:   5  zero:         7
Original trees:  57  After join: 17
\- Compressing file
87.14%
Remember to run myisamchk \-rq on compressed tables
shell> \fBls \-l station.*\fR
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my         127874 Apr 17 19:00 station.MYD
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my          55296 Apr 17 19:04 station.MYI
\-rw\-rw\-r\-\-   1 monty    my           5767 Apr 17 19:00 station.frm
shell> \fBmyisamchk \-dvv station\fR
MyISAM file:     station
Isam\-version:  2
Creation time: 1996\-03\-13 10:08:58
Recover time:  1997\-04\-17 19:04:26
Data records:               1192  Deleted blocks:              0
Datafile parts:             1192  Deleted data:                0
Datafile pointer (bytes):      3  Keyfile pointer (bytes):     1
Max datafile length:    16777215  Max keyfile length:     131071
Recordlength:                834
Record format: Compressed
table description:
Key Start Len Index   Type                 Root  Blocksize    Rec/key
1   2     4   unique  unsigned long       10240       1024          1
2   32    30  multip. text                54272       1024          1
Field Start Length Type                         Huff tree  Bits
1     1     1      constant                             1     0
2     2     4      zerofill(1)                          2     9
3     6     4      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
4     10    1                                           3     9
5     11    20     table\-lookup                         4     0
6     31    1                                           3     9
7     32    30     no endspace, not_always              5     9
8     62    35     no endspace, not_always, no empty    6     9
9     97    35     no empty                             7     9
10    132   35     no endspace, not_always, no empty    6     9
11    167   4      zerofill(1)                          2     9
12    171   16     no endspace, not_always, no empty    5     9
13    187   35     no endspace, not_always, no empty    6     9
14    222   4      zerofill(1)                          2     9
15    226   16     no endspace, not_always, no empty    5     9
16    242   20     no endspace, not_always              8     9
17    262   20     no endspace, no empty                8     9
18    282   20     no endspace, no empty                5     9
19    302   30     no endspace, no empty                6     9
20    332   4      always zero                          2     9
21    336   4      always zero                          2     9
22    340   1                                           3     9
23    341   8      table\-lookup                         9     0
24    349   8      table\-lookup                        10     0
25    357   8      always zero                          2     9
26    365   2                                           2     9
27    367   2      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
28    369   4      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
29    373   4      table\-lookup                        11     0
30    377   1                                           3     9
31    378   2      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
32    380   8      no zeros                             2     9
33    388   4      always zero                          2     9
34    392   4      table\-lookup                        12     0
35    396   4      no zeros, zerofill(1)               13     9
36    400   4      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
37    404   1                                           2     9
38    405   4      no zeros                             2     9
39    409   4      always zero                          2     9
40    413   4      no zeros                             2     9
41    417   4      always zero                          2     9
42    421   4      no zeros                             2     9
43    425   4      always zero                          2     9
44    429   20     no empty                             3     9
45    449   30     no empty                             3     9
46    479   1                                          14     4
47    480   1                                          14     4
48    481   79     no endspace, no empty               15     9
49    560   79     no empty                             2     9
50    639   79     no empty                             2     9
51    718   79     no endspace                         16     9
52    797   8      no empty                             2     9
53    805   1                                          17     1
54    806   1                                           3     9
55    807   20     no empty                             3     9
56    827   4      no zeros, zerofill(2)                2     9
57    831   4      no zeros, zerofill(1)                2     9
.fi
.RE
.PP
\fBmyisampack\fR
displays the following kinds of information:
.TP 3n
\(bu
normal
.sp
The number of columns for which no extra packing is used.
.TP 3n
\(bu
empty\-space
.sp
The number of columns containing values that are only spaces. These occupy one bit.
.TP 3n
\(bu
empty\-zero
.sp
The number of columns containing values that are only binary zeros. These occupy one bit.
.TP 3n
\(bu
empty\-fill
.sp
The number of integer columns that do not occupy the full byte range of their type. These are changed to a smaller type. For example, a
BIGINT
column (eight bytes) can be stored as a
TINYINT
column (one byte) if all its values are in the range from
\-128
to
127.
.TP 3n
\(bu
pre\-space
.sp
The number of decimal columns that are stored with leading spaces. In this case, each value contains a count for the number of leading spaces.
.TP 3n
\(bu
end\-space
.sp
The number of columns that have a lot of trailing spaces. In this case, each value contains a count for the number of trailing spaces.
.TP 3n
\(bu
table\-lookup
.sp
The column had only a small number of different values, which were converted to an
ENUM
before Huffman compression.
.TP 3n
\(bu
zero
.sp
The number of columns for which all values are zero.
.TP 3n
\(bu
Original trees
.sp
The initial number of Huffman trees.
.TP 3n
\(bu
After join
.sp
The number of distinct Huffman trees left after joining trees to save some header space.
.sp
.RE
.PP
After a table has been compressed,
\fBmyisamchk \-dvv\fR
prints additional information about each column:
.TP 3n
\(bu
Type
.sp
The data type. The value may contain any of the following descriptors:
.RS 3n
.TP 3n
\(bu
constant
.sp
All rows have the same value.
.TP 3n
\(bu
no endspace
.sp
Do not store endspace.
.TP 3n
\(bu
no endspace, not_always
.sp
Do not store endspace and do not do endspace compression for all values.
.TP 3n
\(bu
no endspace, no empty
.sp
Do not store endspace. Do not store empty values.
.TP 3n
\(bu
table\-lookup
.sp
The column was converted to an
ENUM.
.TP 3n
\(bu
zerofill(\fIN\fR)
.sp
The most significant
\fIN\fR
bytes in the value are always 0 and are not stored.
.TP 3n
\(bu
no zeros
.sp
Do not store zeros.
.TP 3n
\(bu
always zero
.sp
Zero values are stored using one bit.
.RE
.TP 3n
\(bu
Huff tree
.sp
The number of the Huffman tree associated with the column.
.TP 3n
\(bu
Bits
.sp
The number of bits used in the Huffman tree.
.sp
.RE
.PP
After you run
\fBmyisampack\fR, you must run
\fBmyisamchk\fR
to re\-create any indexes. At this time, you can also sort the index blocks and create statistics needed for the MySQL optimizer to work more efficiently:
.sp
.RS 3n
.nf
shell> \fBmyisamchk \-rq \-\-sort\-index \-\-analyze \fR\fB\fItbl_name\fR\fR\fB.MYI\fR
.fi
.RE
.PP
A similar procedure applies for
ISAM
tables. After using
\fBpack_isam\fR, use
\fBisamchk\fR
to re\-create the indexes:
.sp
.RS 3n
.nf
shell> \fBisamchk \-rq \-\-sort\-index \-\-analyze \fR\fB\fItbl_name\fR\fR\fB.ISM\fR
.fi
.RE
.PP
After you have installed the packed table into the MySQL database directory, you should execute
\fBmysqladmin flush\-tables\fR
to force
\fBmysqld\fR
to start using the new table.
.PP
To unpack a packed table, use the
\fB\-\-unpack\fR
option to
\fBmyisamchk\fR
or
\fBisamchk\fR.
.SH "COPYRIGHT"
.PP
Copyright 1997\-2006 MySQL AB
.PP
This documentation is NOT distributed under a GPL license. Use of this documentation is subject to the following terms: You may create a printed copy of this documentation solely for your own personal use. Conversion to other formats is allowed as long as the actual content is not altered or edited in any way. You shall not publish or distribute this documentation in any form or on any media, except if you distribute the documentation in a manner similar to how MySQL disseminates it (that is, electronically for download on a Web site with the software) or on a CD\-ROM or similar medium, provided however that the documentation is disseminated together with the software on the same medium. Any other use, such as any dissemination of printed copies or use of this documentation, in whole or in part, in another publication, requires the prior written consent from an authorized representative of MySQL AB. MySQL AB reserves any and all rights to this documentation not expressly granted above.
.PP
Please email
<docs@mysql.com>
for more information.
.SH "SEE ALSO"
isamchk(1),
isamlog(1),
msql2mysql(1),
myisam_ftdump(1),
myisamchk(1),
myisamlog(1),
mysql(1),
mysql.server(1),
mysql_config(1),
mysql_explain_log(1),
mysql_fix_privilege_tables(1),
mysql_zap(1),
mysqlaccess(1),
mysqladmin(1),
mysqlbinlog(1),
mysqlcheck(1),
mysqld(1),
mysqld(8),
mysqld_multi(1),
mysqld_safe(1),
mysqldump(1),
mysqlhotcopy(1),
mysqlimport(1),
mysqlshow(1),
pack_isam(1),
perror(1),
replace(1),
safe_mysqld(1)
.P
For more information, please refer to the MySQL Reference Manual,
which may already be installed locally and which is also available
online at http://dev.mysql.com/doc/.
.SH AUTHOR
MySQL AB (http://www.mysql.com/).
This software comes with no warranty.
